Koeleria macrantha - Crested Hair-grass - and Langcliffe limestone wildflowers growing with it

There are two parts to this post.

1. The more  serious "How to identify it"  part to fit in with my series on grasses in this blog.

2. The chatty bit (lower down)  about finding it in flowering at Plantlife's Reserve Winskill Stones, above Langcliffe, and the flowers that grow with it.

Crested Hair-grass is a grass most beginner botanists have not heard of, because there are big parts of Britain where it does not grow.

It is a beautiful small grass of low nutrient limestone and chalk pastures, and  base rich sandy areas by the sea.  It grows  where we can often find other delightful lime-loving flowers. It can grow in some old meadows on base rich soil. 

It is unlikely to occur in places that most people walk over most of the time: city streets - heavily fertilised meadows, in playing fields or lawns (unless your lawn happens to be on very thin chalk or limestone soil), in wetlands  or bogs or woodland. And it is so very small, so people just do not see it.

It is one of the indicator species of old grassland I had to look out for when surveying grassland for the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

Without flowers it is quite hard to identify - until you notice the tiny hairs that line the edge of the leaf blades and the tops of the ridges on the upper surface if the of the tiny (2mm wide, 3cm long) blades of grass. 

When I was at the Field Studies Council's Malham Tarn Field Centre  teaching A level Ecology weeks we compared the vegetation on different types of grassland and looked at different ways of measuring species abundance. For example we compared plants on rendzinas (shallow limestone soil) and brown earths (deeper soil but still not too acid) 

Some of you might know Red Fescue (Festuca rubra) and Common Bent (Agrostis capillaris). For the tiny grasses in the turf I used to say "If it has needle-like leaf blades, call it Festuca rubra; If it has flat leaf blades call it Agrostis capillaris. Agrostis leaves do have ribs, but they are very fine ribs: Festuca rubra at the base have needle-like leaves,  but when its shoots start to flower they produce wider leaves with about 5 to 7 to 9 ribs.

Koerleia is about half way between this.

BUT  IT  HAS  HAIRS  ON  THE RIBS  ON  THE  BLADES when looked at with a hand lens.

 Its inflorescences are quite distinctive- Slightly silvery; they can be compact most of the time like a lombardy poplar, but sometimes the inflorescence branches spread out - when the weather is conducive for the florets to shed their pollen.

The inflorescence has a hairy stem. The only other common grass with a hairy stem is Yorkshire Fog.

25 June 2026 - at Winskill Stones Plantlife Reserve but probably been flowering for a week or two.

The slope opposite the Quarry cutting Car Park at Plantlife's Winskill Stone Reserve is a good place to see Crested Hair-grass

Note this year you can see that the "Landscape Picture Ash tree"
has really been affected by Ash die-back

Koeleria macrantha 20 June 2024  limestone pasture slope in Lower Winskill Farm

Small Heath butterfly on Koeleria macrantha,  on YWT's Southerscales reserve

And here are a few plants growing with it: 

Thyme.

This is Thyme-leaved Sandwort - it is extremely tiny.

Salad Burnet close-up - each flower has four green sepals and at the end of the style is the tassel of red stigmas.

Bird's-foot Trefoil

For my records, the reason I went up to Winskill Stones on 25 June was look look for Wavy Hair-grass and Nardus stricta  which used to grow in a tiny area with deeper soil not far from the road 25 -20 years ago - I used to show it to people who came on grasses courses I ran at Lower Winskill Farm. Sadly these two species do not seem to be there any more.  

This is no great crisis for nature conservation - just an interesting fact, and it means I will have to walk or drive further to look for these acid-loving plants. For some reason the soil had remained more acid there, left over from the days when the area had had different management. It was the only place on the reserve where I had found these two species. It may even be a consequence of the rain having a lot of sulphur dioxide in it up till about 30 years ago.

Well I shall just have to go elsewhere in Langcliffe Parish and record it these two species in July

Wildflower walks round Settle from Covid onwards..

Grasses - index to posts about different species of grass on this site

Plicate Sweetgrass at Langcliffe, Eco-Explorers, Smelly and scented wild plants, Road diversions-not- and Hot weather

 Why do my posts cover so many topics at once? I ask myself. 

Huh.

First, to continue my "When do grasses come into flower at Langcliffe (Yorks Dales)?" theme..

I was delighted on 23 June to notice a special grass right next to Langcliffe Car Park, opposite the church... This, I think is the first time I have ever found it in Langcliffe Parish: Plicate Sweetgrass, Glyceria notata. It is growing next to the Yellow Flag, another water loving plant. (I haven't even included it in my special set of Grass posts - yet - It is 700m rather than 200m away from home.)

Checking that the lemmas (the outside of the florets) are 4-5-5mm long. Excuse the not 100% clean fingernails.fingernails.

Why is it special?  - It only grows in specially wet places.  

And although, being on limestone, Langclife Parish soils are very dry, the one place in the village that gets wet is at the foot of the Langcliffe Brow slope. 

In very wet weather the drain under the ground can't take all the water so water runs down the side of the road of Langcliffe brow and makes this patch of grass wet.  (and haven't we been warned our climate is getting wetter?)

It is the biggest of the three very similar Sweetgrasses (1. Plicate, 2. Glaucous and 3.Floating Sweet-grass)   At home I later checked that its florets were only 5mm long, not 6mm as in Floating Sweetgrass.

Today Tue 23 June was Eco Explorers.

We had planned to drive up Langcliffe Brow and walk on the hills. But the Road Diversion signs had appeared again - saying the road was closed for a fortnight. So we decided on village activities instead.

In fact the road WAS open. They are putting a new drain in beside the road (to take the stream water ). But is is only the side of the road that is affected, apart from when the big vehicles are there. Which they weren't.

The weather was so hot that we decided to remain where there was the shade of trees. This is part of the second hot spell in 2026.

Our planned one kilometer walk was replaced by a 20 meter walk from the cars to the Yellow Flag and Sweetgrass patch, to the opposite side of the road near the church where the verge was wide enough to put out a blue sheet under the shade of the sycamore and cherry tree. 

We plonked ourselves down and carefully spread out the four smelly plants and one grass we had collected: How many of them can you recognise?

Hedge Woundwort

Ground Elder (The leaves, when crushed, have a distinctive smell.)

Elderflower. This bush has similar shaped leaves
with leaflets to Ground Elder

The fourth smelly wildplant was growing just next to our blue picnic mat - Pineapple Weed.

After our mini-picnic with cherries from Booths, we visited the church where we treated each child to chose a book from the big selection of children's books for sale.

After a short visit to the children's play area across the green, we made plans for three weeks time (Tue 14th) to revisit the Hoffmann Kiln. That will be the last Eco-Explorers after school walk this term.

There will be an Eco Explorer's Day camp at Lower Winskill Farm on Monday 24 August. Look out for a poster telling you how to book for that (or contact me).

Wildflower walks round Settle from Covid onwards..

Grasses - index to posts about different species of grass on this site

Midsummer grass flowers

Midsummer day near the Ribble at Langcliffe: 

Helictochloa pratensis - Meadow Oat-grass by the Ribble

21 June:

16 species of grass in flower before breakfast on the main-road-side, and a country track .. and
8 more just now down near the river after supper

 - and all within 200 metres of my house near Langcliffe in the Yorkshire Dales. What a privilege! - total - 24!!..    

Plus 4 more whose leaves I saw but it is too early for the flowers

Plus 4 more I might be lucky enough to find one day within the 200metres: The total will be 31 by July!

First an increasingly good display in the gutter between the pavement and the road

Rye-grass (Lolium perenne) and
Soft Brome (Bromus hordeaceus)

False Oat-grass (Arrhenatherum elatius)

Hungarian Brome (Bromopsis inermis)

-----------------------

Then up onto the country track near the railway

Upright Brome  (though leaning over here!!!) (Bromopsis erecta)

Morning finds:

Alopecurus pratensis           Meadow Foxtail

Anthoxanthum odoratum    Sweet Vernal-grass 

Arrhenatherum elatius         False oat-grass

Avenula pubescens              Downy Oat-grass

Bromus hordeaceous           Soft Brome

Bromopsis erecta                 Upright Brome

Bromopsis                            Hungarian Brome

Cynosurus cristatus              Crested dog's-tail

Dactylis glomerata               Cock's-foot

Elymus repens                      Couch-grass

Festuca rubra                        Red Rescue

Lolium perenne                    Rye-grass

Schedonorus pratensis          Meadow Fescue

Poa annua                             Annual Meadow-grass

Poa pratensis                         Smooth Meadow-grass   
(or subcaerualea)

Poa trivialis                           Rough Meadow-grass

Evening: 
- On limestone bedrock bank that was a former pasture, but has been fenced off by the Ribble Rivers Trust for about ten years.

Briza media                                     Quaking Grass

Elymus caninus (almost in flower)  Bearded Couch

Festuca ovina                                   Sheep's Fescue

Helictochloa pratensis                      Meadow Oat-grass

Phalaris arundinacea (almost in flower) Reed Canary-grass

Schedonorus arundinaceus               Tall Fescue

Sesleria caerulea                               Blue Moor-grass

Trisetum flavescens                          Yellow Oat-grass

Down near the river. 

Meadow Oat-grass  Helictochloa pratensis

Quaking-grass Briza media

Leaves see but not in flower:

Agrostis capillaris - not in flower

Agrostis stolonifera - not in flower

(Schedonorus gigantea  )  - not in flower       

(Brachypodium sylvaticum) - not in flower

Hope to see next month - 

Bromopsis ramosa

Molinia caerulea?

Phleum pratense

Aira praecox (near railway)

See  my many posts on individual species

Read online the article I wrote for the North Craven Heritage Trust - A Grass for every month in North Craven. p27, edition 2009 - Where I state there are 72 native grasses in North Craven and about 7 non-native growing wild.

St Mary's, Embsay, Churchyard species count for Churches Count on Nature 10 June 2026

 Here is the start of my account for Wed 10 June - this year's visit for Churches Count on Nature Week. 

We had a rainy morning, but the sun came out in the afternoon when the children from Class 4 came from Embsay Primary School. No pictures of the 30 children because of getting permission for photos of children is difficult.  But the children worked hard and had a good time.  

The Purple Sage near the church porch was very popular with two types of bee

Having collected tall examples of grasses beforehand from some of the patches in the grave-yard left unmown, I had time at the beginning to introduce the children to the flowers of grasses such as Yorkshire Fog, False Oat-grass, Foxtail, and Fescue - four "F"s

 plus Ryegrass and Cock's-foot and three Meadow Grasses. but maybe that's enough.

and to demonstrate to the whole class the use of a handlens -- .   

We looked at the bees who loved the purple sage.

One girl found an enormous worm - .. This long  (stretch out arms...) 

In one quadrat I found some of worm casts.  (See my notes on worms at the end. We had been asked to look for evidence of creatures as well as the creatures themselves.

We stood and listened for two minutes to all the sounds we could hear. Apart from a plane and some cars and the wind,  

I could hear
"Take two coos, Taffy, Take two coos Taffy" - Wood pigeon

and "Jack! Jack!"  - Jackdaw

and "Caw" - Rook or crow.

Revd  could hear "Chiff, chaff, chiff, Chaff"

Others could hear a black bird (talks in sentences with gaps in between)

After the children left, Liz, Lesley, and I had time to look round the churchyard ourselves. We especially revisited the area of huge logs left where an old dangerous sycamore tree had been felled the previous year. This disturbed area has been left natural. We found the beautiful Collared Parachute-mushroom - Marasmius rotula growing near the base of the saw off trunk.  

Marasmius rotula

I do hope someone will count the rings on the sawn trunk to find out how old the tree was.

Nearby, squashed between the sawn trunk of the sycamore and the tall beech trees along the east boundary they have recently planted a whitebeam. At least this will not grow too tall. They were told  had to plant a tree to replace the sycamore. Meanwhile the sycamore trunk is merrily sprouting lots of side shoots itself, and there are at least two ash saplings growing in the forks between the butresses/roots of the old trunk

Plus Hedge Woundwort, Wood Aven, Bird's-eye Speedwell, and Herb Robert. A bit less inspiring is the large patch of Ground Elder - I reminded Liz that this weed IS edible when the leaves are young -and was introduced about a thousand years ago because it is edible

I recorded one extra lichen (Bilimbia sabulatorum)  to add to my lichen list.

Mosses

This year I decided to make a start on Mosses. 

In fact, for a long time I only found three mosses, on the stone boundary wall, on the base of the grave stones and on tree bases:-

1. Homalothecium sericium Silky Wall-Feather-moss 
2. Hypnum cupressiforme, Cypress-leaved Plait Moss
3. Rhytidadelphus squarrosus   Springy Turf-moss

On the tarmac path beside the Purple Sage plant and wooden seat was some type of yet-to-be-identified tiny cushion moss (my name for acrocarpous mosses maybe a  Didymodon species Beard-moss) 

4. Let's just call it Beard Moss for now.

On the west wall of the church was a few tufts of 

 5. Tortula muralis. Wall Screw-moss

Then on the west side of the church there was a kerbed grave. (in the foreground below)

 This had four mosses: 

6. Thuidium tamariscinum,  Common Tamarisk-moss

7. Calliergonella cuspidata,  Pointed Spear-moss

8. Cirriphyllum piliferum  Hair pointed Feather-moss

 and of course lots more Rhytidiadelphus squarosus  all growing amongst some Creeping Soft grass (Holcus mollis)

Creeping Soft-grass - the shoots come up separately because they are separated by rhizomes (underground shoots). It usually grows in woods. It is growing through the Springy Turf-moss. on the Kerb, you just may be able to see the four patches of moss I had been photographing

9.  Finally in a plant pot there was some type of  Bryum  Thread-moss - It could well be the Common Thread-moss Bryum capillare but I have it in a packet and may, just may, one day get round to looking at it.

The children may only remember one or two names of the grasses. But I hope they will remember that there are lots of species of grass, and that they found as many types of grass in each plot as they did herbs. 

More to come on earthworms later... if I have time.

Anthoxanthum odoratum Sweet Vernal-grass  and Ox-eye daisy

Horton in Ribblesdale Churchyard species count for Churches Count on Nature 7 June 2026

 Results from Horton-in-Ribblesdale

6-14 June is "Churches Count on Nature Week", promoted by Caring for God's Acre.

Horton-in-Ribblesdale on Sunday afternoon 7 June 2026, held one of one of the first "churchyard counts" in the Yorkshire Dales this week.

(There are lots of pictures at the end. I am still writing this post.)

I was delighted to be accompanied by local entomologist  Dr Terry Whitaker  who pointed out several interesting features:- 

It was Messy Church Sunday and six children from Messy Church and some parents took time off from their indoor artistic work with vicar Revd Stephen Dawson to come outside into the relative cold, and help look for creatures and plants in flower. 

They joined five members of Craven Conservation Group including local botanist Judith Allinson and entomologist Terry Whitaker. Margaret Barker of Horton Church showed where she, with the team from the church had placed wildflowers and wildflower seeds in previous years, including some "wildflower bombs" by the footpath She showed some of the bushes that had been planted. 

Judith observed: 

"The churchyard grass seems a good mixture of short grass on the paths and cut paths through the grass, then some areas with medium length grass.  And some patches where the grass is rarely cut and has grown very long, and become dominated by the tall "False-Oat-grass" which shades out other plants. The variety of management allows different insects and different plants to live in the different habitats."

They spent about 30 minutes this cold Sunday afternoon (cold after the previous week's heatwave)  looking in the churchyard. The list became: 11 Grasses in flower, 2 Grasslike plants in flower, 24 Herbs in flower, plus a variety of  minibeasts.

Named so far includes

11 grasses:

Sweet Vernal Grass, Downy Oat-grass, Yellow Oat-grass, Meadow Foxtail, Red Fescue 

Yorkshire Fog, Rough Meadow-grass, Smooth Meadow-grass,

False Oat-grass, Ryegrass, Cock's-foot 

2 grasslike:

Pendulous sedge, Field Woodrush

24 herbs in flower:

White (5):  

Ox-eye Daisy, Daisy, Spring Whitlow-grass, Common Mouse-ear Chickweed, White Clover

Pink (4):
Red Clover, Herb Robert, Shining Crane's-bill,  Cuckoo flower (aka Mayflower, Ladies-smock, Milkmaid) 

Orange or brown or greenish (4)

Fox and Cubs, Common Sorrel; Ribwort Plantain; Procumbent Pearlwort

Blue (4):

Bird's-eye (Germander) Speedwell. Wall Speedwell, Forget me not, Columbine (Aquilegia)

Yellow (6): 

Cat's-ear  Dandelion, Prickly Sow-Thistle; Groundsel, Meadow Buttercup, Bird's-foot Trefoil

Purple (1):

Bush vetch

1 seven spot ladybird - 

1 named Moss - Springy Turf Moss

1 named slug (out of four found): Leopard Slug

2 snails:

 the Garden Snail, 

the Strawberry Snail.

1 Woodlouse we hope to name shortly

1 gall on Germander Speedwell: the  Gall-Midge -Jaapeilla veronicae

3 Birds: Blackbird, Greenfinch and Crow/Rook.

 The three lichens which caught people's attention were: Map Lichen (bright yellow green); White-rim Lichen Lecanora rupicola (now called Glaucomaria  rupicola) which grows on silica rich rocks such as the slaty material used for the Horton grave stones; and Limestone Firedot Lichen Caloplaca flavescens (now called Variospora flavescens

Columbine (Aquilegia vulgaris) -probably garden escape or planted at the back churchyard entrance.

Herb Robert on the steps

Ox-eye (Dog) Daisies, Meadow Buttercup , Ribwort Plantain and Common Sorrel

Red Clover

Downy Oat-grass - This is one of the "Indicator species"
 that can be found in old Dales Hay Meadows. 

Lichen mosaic on a gravestone. Penyghent, one of Yorkshire's thee peaks is seen in the background. The white lichen is Lecanora rupicola
This type of rock was called "Horton Flags" and there is a good article about their use by Bill Mitchell here.   In fact there are a variety of new geological names given to the Silurian and Ordovician rocks which are quarried at the local quarries at Horton and Helwith Bridge (See article). These are some of the oldest rock layers in Yorkshire.

Lots more Lecanora rupicola

Ox-eye Daisies  (Dog Daisies)

Margaret Barker (second from left) from Horton Church with three members of Craven Conservation Group

Yorkshire Fog 

Pendulous Sedge

Cat's-ear

The Cat's-ear has simple hairs on its leaves.
Unlike a plant with similar flowers -
Rough Hawk's-bit which has forked hairs. Bend the leaf over yur finger and use a hand-lens

Pointing out the Variospora flavescens (formerly called Caloplaca flavescens) at the church entrance.  This is the first lichen on the Lichen Nature Trail of the churchyard's top twenty lichens. 

On to the Animals:- 

Seven Spot Ladybird.  It has a wing that is blackened
due to some form of damage.

Dr Terry Whitaker  pointed out several interesting features:- 

-  The relatively newly planted ACER at the back right hand corner of the churchyard  is not a sycamore (as I had surmised when seeing it in winter) it has very pale leaves that are much more pointed than sycamore. - - We could see a shoot coming from near its base that had dark green leaves- It must be from the rootstock.

- We discovered new creatures by looking under stones on the ground, carefully replacing each stone afterwards. Creatures under one such stone, however, lost their home as one of the lads at Messy Church equally carefully returned the stone to its original home on the wall. (below)

The Garden Snail

The Leopard Slug

Same picture but with contrast increased
to try and reveal the "leopard's spots"

Activity inside the church

Equipment for decorating biscuits